Winemaker Notes
Dark crimson with ruby hues. Intensely fragrant aromas of blackberry, Satsuma plum and blueberry are beautifully entwined with freshly crushed violets, anise and exotic five spice. The palate is plush and velvety with decadent layers of mulberry, dark red plum and redcurrant, revealing lingering notes of spice and pepper. The concentrated fruit core is balanced by fine, mature tannins leading to an elegant finish with exceptional length.
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Brooding blackberry and blueberry, with pronounced black tea notes, set the statuesque tone. In the mouth a dense tannin fretwork contains the muscular wall of dark fruit. Over four days, subtle flavours and textures of plum sauce and pomegranate syrup, orange blossom and rosewater (bergamot?) emerge, while the spiciness amplifies, with pungent liquorice, sandalwood, allspice and meaty cracked black pepper. Impressive grip, freshness and precision.
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James Suckling
A superlative Hill of Grace, vinous and tautly composed. The sinew and torque are that of a distance runner over a sprinter, building with strength as the wine grows in the glass. While I would hold this for at least a decade, the sense is one of inchoate beauty. Riffs on dried sage, menthol, cloves, lilacs and blue fruit over anything dark or heavy. This takes me back to the way things were, perhaps, before the climate changed. Exceptional for the style.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2019 Hill of Grace Shiraz was picked earlier than the Mount Edelstone fruit, and it was picked on a single day, on March 8. This vineyard has more silt, and it brings out anise and five spice aromas in the wine. It ripens earlier than Mount Edelstone, is darker and more concentrated than the former and brings out the concentration of black fruit and fine tannins that the Eden Valley is so capable of. On the palate, the wine is super fragrant, elegant and fine, with bone broth and rose petals, peppercorns, crushed herbs, black cherry, raspberry pip, black tea and graphite. This is an eloquent wine, and it speaks of the evocatively beautiful place that is the Eden Valley. The tannins hold the fruit in a gentle way in the mouth. It is fine, such a fine expression—I must say, it's not at all what I expected of the 2019 vintage. It's a triumph of a wine. Super.
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Wine Enthusiast
The warm 2019 vintage wasn't lauded as Barossa's best, but Henschke, on its lofty Eden Valley perch, has emerged with a small but beautifully supple range of ‘19s. Leading the charge is Aus's most famous single vineyard. A nose of dusty, dried herbs and violets, bay leaf and tomato atop blackberry and blueberry fruit—with a lick of polished oak—opens. There's a slinkiness to the palate, thanks to the ultrafine, savory, ripe tannins, which make this an approachable Grace now, but one that can still go the distance, two or three decades at least.
Cellar Selection -
Wine Spectator
This strikes an impressive balance between power and elegance, with the lacy, delicate frame forming the perfect backdrop for the mix of flavors, including dark chocolate–covered dried blueberry, maraschino cherry, mocha and dried rose petal, with herbal and spice details of tarragon and chai. Expands further and further until the epic finish, where details of sandalwood and white truffle linger. Shiraz. Drink now through 2045.
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Vinous
The expressive and finely-tuned 2019 Shiraz Hill of Grace is generously proportioned but still holds its cards quite close to its chest at this early stage of life. There is distinctly ripe chocolate and cocoa to start before licorice, black olive and spice begin to rise. With excellent shape and composure, the seam of al-dente tannins provides both youthful drinkability and the backbone to assist with significant aging. A strong but not superlative vintage.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
Higher in elevation and topographically more dramatic than the Barossa Valley floor, Eden Valley abuts it to its south and east. While it is a bit of an extension of Barossa, Eden Valley is topographically different than the pastoral Barossa Valley, and is composed of rocky hills and eucalyptus groves.
Recognizing Eden Valley’s potential with Riesling in the 1960s and 70s, producers started to move their Riesling production from Barossa to these better sites where schist soils on hilltops would produce more steely, tart and age-worthy examples. A most famous site, planted by Colin Gramp, called Steingarten, today produces one of the most outstanding Australian Rieslings. Youthful Eden Valley Rieslings express floral, grapefruit and mineral, while with time in the bottle, they become increasingly toasty and complex.
Riesling isn’t the only grape the region can grow; undeniably at lower altitudes Shiraz does very well. Mount Edelstone is a notable vineyard as well as the Hill of Grace, which boasts healthy Shiraz vines well over 100 years old. This is the only Australian region where Merlot has a made a name for itself and Chardonnay can be spectacular, particularly from the High Eden subregion in the southern valley.